The Changing of Times
by Kainos Ktisis
Summary: Sometimes the greatest and most memorable stories have the most tragic endings. For Inuyasha, this couldn’t be more true…Songfic.


A/N: Big fat warning. This is very, very angsty. In fact, I think this one might even beat out The Beat of Her Heart. The rating is purely for angst, though it probably still wasn't necessary. I think I changed my writing style half-way through too. But that's not really of any consequence.

The song I usedis The Changing of Times by Underoath. Their stuff is usually too screamy for me, but I found that I really liked these lyrics for some reason.

Anyway, I really needed to get this one out of me before I blew up. So, here it is. Enjoy the sadness…

Disclaimer: Don't own Underoath or Inuyasha. Never did and probably never will.

* * *

**The Changing of Times**

It was supposed to be a quiet day. There were no signs of any jewel shards and Naraku had been uncharacteristically quiet the past couple of weeks. They should have known that something was going to happen real soon.

But no matter how soon anyone thought the final confrontation would be, no one expected Naraku to suddenly appear at their doorstep with legions of his minions gathered before him. Just when they were about to get into the war of the century, Sesshomaru suddenly arrived and smote Naraku with a single blow of the Tokijin.

And that was it. Anti-climatic to the max, everyone watched with stupefied expressions when Naraku's essence of evil dissipated into the air and was scattered by the eastern wind.

No one knew what prompted Sesshomaru to take action against his one-time ally, and he himself was gone as soon as the dust had settled.

Inuyasha would have celebrated but as Kagome shakily put together the Shikon Jewel—the whole jewel—he knew that she would leave.

_:Never expected it to arrive so soon_

_But as the night drifted on_

_It came time to say goodbye:_

This was the day that he had dreaded for so long, tried to ignore for so long. But no matter how much he didn't want to see her go, a little part of his heart knew that this day would eventually come.

The only difference was that it came much sooner than anyone had expected.

He stood there watching her, waiting in drawn-out agony for her next move. The sun cast a dim reddish glow on everything it touched as it slowly climbed among its sparkling brethren. It was bright enough for his weakened eyes to make out her lithe figure, but dark enough to hide himself amongst the trees.

He knew what she was trying to do. She wanted to leave before she had to say any goodbyes. He knew that she knew that she would not be able to leave if she was facing everyone while bidding farewell. Thus, she chose to do it when no one saw her, when she could simply steal away in the night and none would be the wiser.

The one thing that she had forgotten to take into account was Inuyasha's heightened senses, despite the fact that he was human this night.

_:Turning your back and walking away_

_This cold winter morning is all that remains:_

She glanced around at her surroundings nervously as she made her way towards the well. Part of her wished that Inuyasha would come after her, but she had chosen to leave on this day on purpose. Last night was the new moon, meaning that he was human…Also meaning that he would _not_ notice her leave.

This was for the best, she tried to remind herself. But it was difficult to convince her heart of that.

She had to will herself not to look back lest she lose her resolve and put herself through the unneeded torture of seeing Inuyasha go to hell with Kikyo. She would not be able to bear it.

Still, she had waited until it was nearly morning before she started to leave. Perhaps a part of her wanted dawn to come early so that Inuyasha would find her leaving and maybe 'convince' her to stay. But, as she neared ever closer to the well, she knew that he wasn't coming. This was not going to be a fairytale ending to a less than fairytale story. There was too much grief involved for this particular story to be romanticized.

Morning broke and it would only be a matter of minutes before Inuyasha would realize that she had left. She had to leave now. So, after taking one last look at the world that held the people she had come to love so much, she turned her back and jumped in, leaving nothing but a single tear drop on the cracked wooden frame and a memory in all those who had known her in this era.

_:Why couldn't you tell me to my face_

_Instead of hiding until I lost faith:_

Inuyasha nearly screamed when he helplessly watched her disappear into the link between their worlds. Every fiber in his body yearned to run after her and jump in with her, but something…something held him back. His heart ached so badly and everything collapsed around him, suffocating him, killing him.

And suddenly he knew. His duty to Kikyo was what held him back.

It wasn't fair to stay Kagome when he was committed to another woman. But God…he wasn't sure he could even last five minutes knowing that the one woman he loved was not coming back to him.

It hurt to know that she refused to say goodbye to his face, but he understood why.

He knew…if he had called her back, Kagome would have stayed. But he just didn't want to put her through that. He didn't want to hurt her anymore than he had in the past couple of years. And he couldn't tell her his reasons. If he told her, she would stay all the same. It was best to just let her faith in him be broken.

So, he decided to hide in the shadows until every last chance of calling her back was lost.

_:A heart gets broken as a life gets set free_

_And all I asked was love me:_

He stayed away from everyone else that day. He couldn't face them. He knew the questions they would ask, the fingers they would point, the tears they would cry. He knew it would be his fault that Kagome was gone and he couldn't stand it.

He fled deeper into the forest, the trees on either side passing as little more than a smudge on the picturesque landscape. But he could care less about his surroundings. He didn't care about anything right now. All he knew to do was run.

Maybe he was scared that without Kagome's gentle presence to keep him in check, his demon blood would take over and convert him into a killing machine. Maybe he _shouldn't_ be around anyone anymore now that he was threat.

Keh…what a lie!

He knew that it was the Tetsusaiga that kept him check and not the modern-day girl, but he couldn't help but try and find an excuse to retrieve her.

He couldn't face them. He couldn't face them without her.

He had stopped. He didn't know how long he had been on his knees and he didn't know how long Kikyo had been towering over him. Frankly, he really didn't care either.

"Do you really care so much for my reincarnation that you have been reduced to such a state?" she questioned though her tone sounded more like she was thinking aloud.

He shrugged. "I guess." A bit of his old fire came back as he stood to face his one-time lover. It was amazing how a couple years could turn his respect and love for her into this resentment. "Just get this over with. I can't live without Kagome in my life anyway."

Kikyo looked at him curiously. "You hate me, do you not?"

He scoffed in response. "Hate is a strong word, Kikyo. Surprisingly, I don't hate very many things. I hate Naraku for all he put me through. I once hated Sesshomaru but he was the one who killed Naraku so I guess I can't hate him anymore. I may resent you, but hate? No, I don't think so."

"She has changed you."

"I know."

She stared at him for a long time, as if not sure how to handle this change. Then with a grim look and a shake of her head, she turned to leave. "Inuyasha, I never wanted to drag you to hell. I…am glad that you are willing to live up to your promise, but I know now that I am not the one that you should be tied down to."

Inuyasha was dazed. "Wait, what are you saying?" he called out after her.

"You are free, Inuyasha. You owe me nothing." She stopped walking and turned to face him. Her calculating brown eyes were filled with sadness and a touch of curiosity. "Just tell me this: Did you ever find love in your heart for me?"

He nodded dumbly, still not sure what she was saying. "I did. At one time, I did."

Kikyo lips twitched upwards in a strained but genuine smile as she whispered, "That's all I needed to know."

Then she was gone.

No one ever saw her again.

_:Years passed, seasons changed and I waited_

_(Hate time to say goodbye, hate time):_

He had run after back to the well after that incident with Kikyo. Without a second thought, he jumped in and braced himself for the familiar blue serenity to cushion his fall into the future. Yet, nothing. All he received in return for his anticipation was a hard landing on the packed dirt floor of a dried well. "No…no, no, no! What did you do, Kagome! Please…don't tell me you've sealed this well. Please, no…"

Not knowing what else he could do, he dropped to his knees and began to dig. Yet, for every inch that he dug deeper, two inches of soil replaced the inch he had dug. It was quite nearly like digging in quick sand. But he didn't care. He had to get to her. He had to. His fingers-turned-claws dug with a ferocity he usually reserved for battles and gradually, the bottom of the well began to give way.

Hours passed yet he had no sense of time as he continued to dig. Bloodied dirt caked underneath his claws and stung the open wounds the constant grating had created. Still, he continued to dig.

And still, he was rewarded with nothing.

Night fell and somehow he had managed to unconsciously make his way back to Kaede's hut. No one said a word as they watched him slump dejectedly in a corner with his head bowed low and his bloody fingers dripping crimson liquid on the dirt floor. There was no need to say anything. It was clear by the hanyou's reaction what had occurred.

Kagome was gone for good.

Inuyasha spent the next weeks in the same depressed state. Every morning, he would disappear somewhere—no one ever dared ask where—before heading to the well in the afternoon to lean his back wearily against the wood. Every day, he hoped that Kagome's voice would come drifting up out of the well. Every day he was disappointed.

Weeks turned to months and months into years. Miroku and Sango had long ago married and begun a life of their own—a life that didn't involve Inuyasha. To be sure, they still came to visit him every now and then, but it was so different. Everyone knew that the visits were superficial and they came increasingly rare. Shippo had gone off by himself to traverse the world and only old Kaede remained. Yet, even the old steadfast miko faded into nothing but a memory when she passed away of old age six years after Kagome left. Sesshomaru never bothered him; in fact, he never even saw his half-brother again. Kikyo had disappeared for good.

All that was left was Inuyasha himself. Still he waited by the well in all faithfulness. And there he waited, time being his best friend and his worst enemy.

_:Soon after was the pain_

_That would never reach you_

_(Hate time to say goodbye, hate time):_

She didn't know why she couldn't let go of the past. Rather, she knew why she couldn't let go, but she refused to face it. She missed him. It was as simple as that. Yet, no matter how much she wished she could just see him once, she knew that it was an impossibility. Not only had she sealed the well herself, she no longer had any jewel shards to pass through since she had left those in the trust of Kaede. She also noticed that her powers were quickly deteriorating. It wasn't as if she tried to fire a sacred arrow and noticed the lessened power. She simply found that every day she passed in the modern era, a part of her seemed to leak out her body and fade away.

Thus, even if she wanted to reopen the well, there was no way for her to do so. That knowledge hurt her deeply, but somehow it was oddly comforting in the fact that she had made a decision and she would stick to it. Besides…Inuyasha was probably already with Kikyo in Hell.

She loved the well for that. It gave her the man she loved and helped her stay to the decision to she had made, difficult as it had been.

Still, the pain was great and though she had often heard people say that time heals all, she didn't believe it. She didn't believe that her heart would ever stop bleeding. But what did it matter? Inuyasha would never know how much her heart broke when he didn't come after her. He would never know the love that surged through her body and coursed through her veins. He would never know the regret she had for leaving.

For that, she hated the well and all that it represented: The time that separated her from her love; the taunting closeness yet always the unobtainable; most of all though, she hated time itself.

_:You've gotten over me_

_But it seems I'll never get over you_

_(Hate time to say goodbye, hate time)_

_On me I place this blame:_

He had waited. Years had crawled by in exaggerated slowness and each day without her was agonizing torture. His mind barely registered Miroku and Sango getting married and having their first child or Shippo growing up and courting Souten—ironically since her brothers were the ones who killed his parents. He didn't even spare a second glance when Kaede passed away of old age and was buried next to her sister with all the respect she deserved.

It wasn't until first Miroku, then Sango, died of a devastating plague that he finally tuned into humanity and grieved for his friends. It was funny how the pair had survived all the battles they had been through yet fell victim to a sickness. Human frailty: the very same one that he had once so bitingly—but not purposefully—taunted Kagome about.

Shippo never forgave him for letting Kagome go so easily. The boy was heart-broken and felt betrayed by the one he had come to see as an older brother or maybe even as a father. After he had grown and mated, he had come back every couple of years to see how Inuyasha was doing, but their meetings were always cold.

As for Inuyasha, he spent his days either sitting in the wide boughs of the Goshinku Tree or in a tree overlooking the Bone-Eater's well. Every now and then, a villager would come and ask for his assistance in defeating a demon, but the visits grew fewer over the years and eventually, his name was nothing more than a legend once again.

Decades passed by and Inuyasha was forced to find safe haven deeper and deeper within the forests if he wanted to maintain his solitude. In time, he was no longer able to sit in the Goshinku without fear of someone finding him. The human population somehow managed to thrive and the demon number dwindled until only a couple hundred were left of the thousands, perhaps even millions that, at one time, roamed the earth. Shippo hadn't visited him in the past fifty years and he didn't expect him to.

Centuries came and went and each single day, hour, minute was a second of anguish and distress. Yet, he had made it.

Five hundred years had finally passed and he could see her again. He'd been looking out for her ever since she was born. He watched her live a normal life and be a normal girl. Then came her fifteenth birthday and he watched with ambiguous emotions as she fell down the well for the very first time. Three more years was all he had to wait. Three more years before he could reveal himself to her. He could wait another three years.

He watched her throughout those three years and saw the many nights she came home crying tears that were inflicted by himself. He loathed himself for it and realized just how much heartache he had caused in her life. He never realized that she rarely cried before she met him. He also saw the patience, the love she had for him. He saw the time she admitted her love for him.

Finally, the last three years had passed and he watched in exaggerated slow motion as she came up through the well, sealed it with her powers, and sank to her knees in tears. He wanted to comfort her, to love her, but for some reason his feet did not carry him. Instead, he watched numbly as she eventually forced herself to her feet and locked herself in her room.

He had waited so many years for this one moment, yet when it came, he didn't know how to handle it. She was just as close as always, but somehow, she seemed further than ever before.

He watched in silent desire for another month as she finally began to recover from her heartache. Her smiles grew in frequency though they still lacked the radiance they once possessed. Words were spoken in semi-normalcy more often; conversations went on without him. Yet…even as her heart healed in front of all others, Inuyasha still saw the tears she shed at night when she thought no one was looking. Those tears soaked her pillows and it became a daily ritual to cry herself to sleep.

Then one day, the doorbell rang and his worst nightmares came true.

_:Regrets_

_(Hate time to say goodbye, hate time)_

_Praying heaven will open wide_

_And hold you tight:_

She hated the fact that she still couldn't put him from her mind. She had been back for a whole month, yet she still cried herself to sleep. Even if she was still emotionally scarred, one would think that her body could only produce so many tears before the wellspring of salt water ran dry.

Then one day, as if to break her out of her dazed existence, her doorbell rang.

Surprised and a little curious, Kagome opened the door to find Hojo standing there in all his somewhat ignorant glory. The sun shining behind him cast a shimmering outline around him and gave him an almost ethereal feel. Strangely enough, Kagome had never been happier to see him. Truly, it seemed as if he had come just in time to bring her back into the life she had once so desperately sought: normality.

"Hey Higurashi. I just wanted to drop by to see if you're doing alright. You've been looking really pale this past month," he said in an amiable tone.

Kagome smiled slightly. "Thanks. I'm fine. I'm just a little worn out with all the college applications and the stress that comes with it." The lie came easily. Years of practice had honed her skills and molded her expressions to perfection.

"Yeah, I know what you mean. I'm still stressing about mine college apps. Where are you applying?"

She shrugged. "I was thinking about going overseas. Maybe to America."

"Really? Me, too."

It seemed that for the first time, Kagome was actually enjoying being around Hojo, being around what was normal for an eighteen-year-old girl. Suddenly, she realized that she could do this. She could go on with her life. Maybe…just maybe she could go on without Inuyasha. The thought broke her already fragile heart, but it was strangely consoling. She was strong enough to hold on. She wouldn't let herself drown in depression. After all, Inuyasha was dead. No amount of praying or tears could ever bring him back. All she could do for him was pray that Heaven may open its gates for his lost, lonely soul.

And while a part of her will always regret leaving Inuyasha, she knew that she would regret it even more if she let herself spiral endlessly in that dangerous game of self-pity. So, while she hated to say goodbye, it was also time to start healing.

"Hojo, would you like to go out to the movies sometime?"

_:As for me, I'll be alright_

_This impact you would have_

_The songs I'd write_

_Dreams of you changing your mind_

_Anything to pass the time:_

So that was it.

She had moved on, but he was still here. He was still planted, stuck to the place that he had come to know as home as well. Stuck to the well. But she had moved on.

He didn't know why he couldn't move. He didn't know why his limbs refused to act. All he knew was that he hadn't done a thing except watch in silent horror as she accompanied the boy to first one movie, then another, and then yet another until he lost count. And she didn't just go to movies with him, either. Dinners, dances, parties, and eventually America…always with this one young man. A young man who wasn't Inuyasha, who wasn't anything like himself.

Inuyasha was left to howl his tragic story to the moon in a dismal melody that carried through the wind and reached the ears of the one whom he loved. Yet she would never know it was him. There was a semblance of something she once knew, but the voice and the notes had been so morphed throughout the years that she would never be able to recognize the creature from which the bleak song was evoked from.

He cried his grief and his regret to the stars, but they were deaf to his pain. They were deaf just as Kagome was blind to his existence. He did not exist any longer in her mind.

His days and nights were spent dreaming of what could have been and he was consumed by fantasies. But…they were nothing more than dreams. They had no more substance than the air he breathed. He no longer knew what he lived for. He lived for the dreams. The dreams that would never come true. And so the never-ending cycle would repeat itself. Dream, awake, mourn, howl, wish, dream. That was his whole existence.

Perhaps…perhaps that was for the best. As long, as long as she was happy, Inuyasha would be satisfied. He dare not say he would be happy as well, because he wouldn't be, but he would be satisfied. He will make it through. He'll be alright. He'll guard her for the rest of her life. He'll watch over her every night as she slept. He'll be her guardian angel. He'll love her forever.

_:But for now_

_I hope you can hear me as I cry_

_I love you and goodbye_

_Goodbye, goodbye, goodbye, goodbye:_

He watched her from outside her bedroom window. He was noiseless as he lifted the window and crawled through. So quiet was he that his steps seemed to float over the carpet floor and his body was carried by an unknown current to her bedside. He swept her bangs from her forehead and gently caressed her cheek.

She felt nothing but cold air brushing across her face.

"I love you Kagome," he whispered with a ghostly voice that was nearly alike to his body in that it somehow floated to her ears with nothing carrying it. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw that Kikyo was watching passively from a corner of the room. It was time. He gave her a curt nod and resumed his fascination with Kagome's face. "I love you so much, but I have to go now. I don't to this world anymore. I don't I ever did. But you gave me belonging." His lips brushed her forehead. "You were right to move on. I never existed and I will never exist ever again. This is my last goodbye to you. So…goodbye."

With that he sprinted to the window, not making a single noise, and leapt out. Instead of landing softly on the ground, he floated for a while longer as memories with her flashed through his wearied mind.

Then suddenly, there was nothing.

Kagome stirred when the front door creaked beneath her. She could have sworn that she had felt Inuyasha's presence with her not even five minutes ago. She glanced at the window, yet it was shut. She shook her head at her foolishness. Years had passed yet she still dreamed of him saying those three treasured words to her. Yet this last time…in dreams past, Inuyasha had never said goodbye before. Never before…and she knew never again.

Her bedroom door swung open a little as her husband quietly made his way to her bedside and gave her a gentle peck on the forehead. Yet, it somehow did not instill the same emotions as a certain other kiss in her dreams. Foolishness.

"Hey honey," she mumbled sleepily. "How was work today?"

Hojo smiled as he hand caressed her face. Somehow, it again did not measure up. "Eh, you know. Same old boring stuff. The normal stuff."

Kagome nodded lightly with a slight yawn.

"How about you?"

She was about to reply nothing but her mouth decided to say something else. "I just had a dream that a good friend of mine who had passed a long time ago came back to say goodbye. He never said it when he died. I just wish that I could have said goodbye too."

"Well, I'm sure he didn't mind."

"Yeah," she agreed softly as she let her eyes drift shut. "It was just a dream anyway."

* * *

A/N: Crickets chirping. Yeah, well…that didn't exactly turn out as planned. In fact, I'm not altogether happy that I made it such an odd ending. I was actually going to make it a semi-happy ending that you could decide for yourself. Instead this turned out. Interesting…I think I better explain some stuff though cause this came out really, really vague. 

So, my intention was to make it so that Inuyasha actually passed away during the 500 years that he waited for Kagome. The reason he doesn't do anything when the three-year period is up is because an unconscious part of him knows that he's dead. However, his spirit still hung around but he himself doesn't realize that he's dead until he sees Kikyo in Kagome's room. Kagome moved on with Hojo and had a normal (I liked to emphasize this point) life. She believes that Inuyasha died all those years ago when Kikyo supposedly dragged him to Hell (which she didn't) and she correctly surmises that it was his spirit that had come to bid farewell at last.

Anyway, that was really weird. That's all. I'm thinking about doing an alternate to this one although when it'll be up, I have no idea.


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